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Thursday, June 27, 2024 ~ Volume 69 ~ Issue Number 30 ~ $1.00
Legislature Votes to Put Water Quality Act on November Ballot By Matt Meduri
In what has been a years-long process, temporarily halted by deliberations last summer, the Suffolk County Legislature has finally moved to put the Suffolk County Water Quality Restoration Act on the November ballot as a proposition. Studies have been conducted on Suffolk County’s precarious wastewater system and natural environment. Nitrogen levels, algal blooms, brown and red tides, agriculture and aquaculture, and landmark tourist attractions delicately coalesce around reaching sound wastewater solutions, with a dangerous cocktail on deck if not properly addressed. Wastewater infrastructures are currently funded by a quarter-percent sales tax in Suffolk County, colloquially known as the “quarter-percent fund.” Last summer, the Legislature was presented with a plan to institute a one-eighth-percent sales tax on top of the existing quarter-percent fund to guarantee wastewater funding through 2060. Since the County Legislature cannot levy sales taxes, the initiative had to be passed in the state legislature and signed by Governor Kathy Hochul (D). The Governor made the trip to Captree Island last month to sign the bill, allowing the Legislature to vote to put the referendum in front of voters this fall. Continued on page 10
The County Seal in Riverhead
Kassay Wins AD-04 Democratic Primary, Will Face Flood in November By Matt Meduri One of New York’s most competitive state legislative races, if not the most competitive, gained a bit more clarity after Tuesday night. Village of Port Jefferson Deputy Mayor Rebecca Kassay (D-Port Jefferson) defeated Skyler Johnson (D-Port Jefferson Station) by a wide margin of 64%-36%. Kassay, twice elected as a Trustee for Port Jefferson Village, is making her first bid for state office. Johnson ran as a Democrat against Senator Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk) for the First Senate District in 2022. Palumbo defeated Johnson by just under thirteen points. Kassay is hoping to parlay her experience in local government and the Three Village community to defeat freshman Assemblyman Ed Flood (R-Port Jefferson Station). Flood famously defeated veteran Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) in 2022. Englebright, a geologist and Chair of the powerful Environmental Conservation Committee, was denied a thirtieth year in Albany by Flood after serving since a special election in 1992. Englebright previously served in the Suffolk County Legislature from 1982 until his election to the Assembly. In 2023, he was elected to return to the Legislature in the Fifth Legislative District. Rebecca Kassay (Credit - Village of Port Jefferson)
Assemblyman Ed Flood (Credit - NYS Assembly)
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Graduates of Parent Child + Page 22